darksun_dragonswakefandomcom-20200213-history
Calendar of Tyr
Every city state has its own calendar, but the most commonly used and considered tne Calendar of Tyr. In the calendar of Tyr, years are counted off using a pair of concurrently running cycles; one of eleven parts, the otker of seven. Tne eleven-part, or endlean cycle, is counted and spoken first, in tne order presented below. The seven-part, or seofean cycle, is counted and spoken second. The endlean cycle is complete when Athas' two moons, Ral and Guthay, meet in the heavens—a major eclipse that occurs once every 11 years. The seofean cycle is more abstract, meeting when agitation in the cosmos leads to fury. Every 77 years the cycle repeats itself, ending with a year of Guthay's Agitation and starting again with a new year of Ral's Fury. Each 77-year cycle is called a king's age; there have been 189 complete king's ages since Tyr adopted this calendar (more than 14,500 years). So, the first year of each king's age is a year of Ral's Fury. The next year is a year of Friend's Contemplation, followed by a year of Desert's Vengeance, etc. The 76th year of each king's age is a year of Enemy's Reverence, followed by the 77th year, a year of Guthay's Agitation. Each year is made up of exactly 375 days: the exact time between highest suns. Athasians have no seasons that govern their thinking of time—there is no marked difference in temperature or weather patterns. However, the year is divided into three equal phases: high sun, sun descending, and sun ascending. Highest sun is the first day of the year in the calendar of Tyr and lowest sun indicates the midpoint of the year (which, incidentally, occurs at midnight, and is generally observed in nighttime ceremonies). Days are kept track of in a variety of ways. Commoners tend to identify days with phrases such as thirty five days past the high sun." Other schemes divide the year into 25 weeks of 15 days each, the names of those days associated with important personages of a particular royal house. Usually a Templar is behind such endeavors. The standardized way used by most travelers is the Merchant's Calendar. The Merchant's Calendar uses the Calendar of Tyr for seasons (such as they are on Athas) and years however, each year is further split into twelve 30-day months and three 5-day festivals. The popularity of having a common method of record keeping ensures the Calendar is widespread through known regions, though it's seldom discussed within earshot of an ambitious Templar. Months Athasian ‘months’ are not related to the periods of Ral and Guthay; that would create a very confusing and difficult calendar (some sages and halfling tribes use just such calendars). Instead, they are associated with the constellations of the Athasian zodiac. As explained, the Merchant’s Calendar uses a system of twelve thirty-day months, interspersed by three five-day festivals, one per phase. Each month, on the whims of a bard, also has an astrological sign associated with it. What precisely the relative position of the stars, planets, and moons portend for each individual on Athas is largely up to interpretation, and whatever magics are at play. Following are the months and festivals in each format (bonus: Determine the astrological sign your character was born under!)